The Dragon and the Princess (Wraith and LovinglyAmira)

[Wraith]

The world today is so divided. But that hadn't always been the case, no. Back in the days of yore, only dragons ruled the skies of these beautiful lands. Mighty, majestic, they soared high above and gazed down below at the creatures that could not fly as they did. And pitied them, for the dragons could not think of a curse bigger than being anchored to the ground by no will of your own. How could those little beings live such lives, they wondered. For the dragons were not the mindless beasts that the stories tell of. No, the victors had written the history and the history is not nearly as accurate as it should be. Quite the contrary, the dragons were far more civilized than the humans who were later to become their demise. But before the humans arrived, there were only dragons, ancient and beautiful, left by the Gods to guard the lands. Or so they believed.

It was humans who came along from unknown parts of the world and at first, it was peace. For hundreds of years the humans lived in peace, not fearing the creatures that flew right above their heads day by day. Yet the more they evolved, the more structures they built, they became aware and began fearing. Perhaps it was good to secure themselves a place in the world and make sure that the dragons would not burn the things they built to the ground. So it had begun, the fear mongering that led to the creation of defenses that, realistically, would have been no help against one single dragon, let alone thousands as they were. The dragons did not fear and treated humans as insignificant, seeing to their own and to guarding the ancient secrets they kept. But humans were stubborn and soon enough, defending themselves did not satisfy any longer, and so it was about attacking.

Within a hundred years, a war erupted, a war that began claiming lives by the thousands each day. The dragons, kind and wise, did not destroy villages or burn cities to the ground and instead only attacked the troops that came to hunt them. But the death toll was still too high for humans were rather stubborn and their resolve was unbreaking. Day by day, month by month and year by year the war raged on, and soon enough it became the sole inheritance that a king left to his successor. By now, humans had learned of better ways to defeat the winged behemoths and the dragons were in more and more danger as time passed, so much so that one of the five Dragon Lords led his kin on a killing spree, breaking from the rule of not attacking human settlements and innocents. The soil was oversaturated with blood and the fire spared none. Children, elderly, mothers, peasants, soldiers, nobles, all were turned to mere ashes and scattered in the four winds. The Dragon Lord and his kin were banished, but that did nothing towards repairing any of the damage.

The atrocious acts were what motivated the humans to push forward, to create new ways to defeat the dragons. Those were the times when a new king arose, one Theodrik. It was he who mounted an attack greater than any before it, and it was due to his strategic thinking and his skill in the art of war that earned him the name Dragonbane, forevermore the one who crushed the Dragon Lords and their kins to near extinction. Those left had scattered, assuming the shapes and appearances of humans to pass unseen, and only one was caught, one whom Theodrik Dragonbane wished to keep for himself, a trophy that would remind the generations to come of his victory and glory.

Caged and sealed with a magic ward in the capital city of the kingdom of Thaven, the dragon was left on display in the central square, alive. It was how the poor beast spent its last two hundred years, right to this day.

This day was not a normal one. A convoy all the way from Ethlorien, Thaven's rival kingdom, was welcomed within the city's walls. The King of elves himself, King Ayred Elkian, had come to discuss with the fabled King Gregor Dragonbane, one of the descendants of the legendary Theodrik Dragonbane. And King Ayred had not come alone for he had brought his entire family. Queen Vaeri, Prince Arderth, Princess Alia and Princess Lyra.

The two kingdoms have been in conflict ever since the elves came to the land, just a hundred years after the dragons had been defeated and driven away. But on this historical day, they were to make peace and to create a strategic alliance, for Lyra, the youngest daughter of King Ayred, was to be married to King Gregor himself as the man had been widowed and lonely for years.

 

[LovinglyAmira]

The carriage was silent, it was not an abnormal thing for elves but the energy left the air stale and almost stiff. Lyra thought if she inhaled hard enough her lungs might collapse a much better fate than she faced, so she tried. No success. She had stewed the entire journey trying to think of even one thing that might be positive from this endeavour. Peace? She was sure it was short lived. She had little faith in the hearts of mortal men, or even the immortal one of her father. The only thing she could come up with was that the king was human and would die soon, probably in the next twenty years. She had once spent twenty years just reading books. That had been two decades she had gone rather pale and frail but she had survived it. There was a thump in the road which made the carriage shake.

Lyra pulled back the wood shade to peer outside, she had known they were close but deep in her thoughts she didn’t realize they had arrived. Humans, she had never seen so many, especially not alive. Peculiar creatures, squat and broad, she watched a particularly plump one hung her washing on a line. Her face round, a flush from the sun, everything about them seemed rounder. She leaned her cheek against the window, watching the scenery of her new prison move on by. It wasn’t until they came closer to the city center that her interest really was piqued, in a large cage like a display of honor was the most elegant looking beast she had ever seen.

She wanted to stop the carriage and examine it but she knew it would only annoy her father, instead she watched it. Her eyes catching just a glimmer of its, unlike that of any other common creature she could see something there. That was no simple beast, it was an intelligent creature trapped by fate much like herself. She felt immediately sympathetic, she wondered how long it had been trapped. As they came closer to the castle and the dragon was no longer in view, Lyra pulled the shade shut. She needed to collect herself before she was introduced to what would be her husband.

She shut her eyes.

“Lyra, come on.” A voice yanked her from her mindful meditation, it was her sister. A fair creature with big blue eyes that looked like the might roll out of her head if she moved too quickly. Luckily, Lyra had never witnessed the girl move faster than a graceful saunter. Her family had already exited the carriage leaving her the youngest to step out last, she wanted to loudly protest but it was useless. No amount of complaining would change her fate, instead she would make the best of it. After her sister, Alia exited, Lyra stepped out, moving to the end of the line and giving a curt bow. She was the shortest in her family, her petite frame made her not the remarkable beauty by Elvish standards.

There were many things about her that had made her undesirable to any elvish man of stature, for one she was particularly curvy. Her body not at all like the slim and tall Alia. She also had red hair, when blonde and white hair marked the fashion. And of course, she was young, at least by elf standards and often prone to emotional outbursts and sarcasm. She had gotten her bright red hair from her father, King Ayred, an abnormally tall man that often adorned himself with Elk Horns and pelts. She had gotten her striking blue eyes from her mother, Queen Vaeri, that looked like she had been dipped in fresh milk. Her long blonde hair, almost white, when left down could drape the floor like a fine silk cloak. Her brother, Prince Arderth, was classically fit, a fine bowsman and would one day be king, the pride of which shined on his face with every glance.

The royal family had been brought to a throne room, that graced two purple plush chairs and large marble pillars and not much else. Lyra felt like she must stand taller than usual but still refused to give this human Gregor the privilege of her gaze. She didn’t need to look at him directly to see his features, he was wrinkled and mortal and quite frankly disgusting. He seemed to keep a polite gaze keeping his conversation and focus on the King. A formality that Lyra was thankful for.

Days passed, feasts were had, dances were danced, and a wedding was soon on the horizon. Lyra had not even spoken a word to the human king since arrival, it was likely by design of her father. But fates turned, she was moved into a new room, the queens room, just the name filled her stomach with dread. This was real, her king and father had betrayed her and this was the life she was about to live. The dressing maids started to help her into her nightgown, but before they could finish the doors were pushed open and the human king arrived.

“M’lord.” The ladies bowed, and were quickly shushed away leaving the small elvish woman to fend for herself. He had obviously designed this moment to catch her vulnerable. It had worked, she stood there in just soft white cotton gown, not even with the adornments that brought her honor and status.

“I’ve come to have a look at me bride. Don’t worry, lass. I ain’t going to hurt ya.” He grinned, she noticed he was missing a few teeth. It just added to her disgust she stepped back into the bedpost, a feeble attempt to avoid him. “Skittish, like a fawn waiting for slaughter.” His words were soft but menacing. He moved closer, grabbing the bottom hem of her gown and yanking it upward. “Just trying to get a look.” He grinned, his hand reached out like he might touch her skin but instead he hovered over her breasts and down her stomach before finally gripping her hips. The feeling of his rough hand immediately made a knot in her stomach, she tried to step back but there was nowhere to go. “I just got to check to see if you can handle human children you know.” He dropped her gown and stepped back. “I suppose you will do, much better than the thin one.”

Lyra looked at him, trying her best to keep her voice calm and steady. “Is that all M’lord?” The words felt like acid.

“For now.” He responded, and with that he exited her bed chambers. Her ladies returned quickly after but she did not gain reassurance from the human women. She knew in that moment that she had to leave, may it disgrace her and her family but no way could she disgraced the gods by having little halfling children with that thing. What kind of life would they live? Half cursed by the gods, doomed to age and wither away like some common creature. No, she had a plan, she would wait until the middle of the night and leave, and on her way she would free the dragon he kept as trophy.

The moment came and Lyra slipped out her bed, carefully she dressed herself and packed a bag with anything she might need including whatever jewels could fit. Knowing it might be useful for trade down the road if she had to, she also had some food. Just fruit kept in the rooms likely to show off wealth something she thought completely pointless. She finished her getaway look with her thick traveling cloak, pulling the hood over her head most people wouldn’t recognize her as Lyra let alone a Princess. This had been the easy part, the hard part was yet to come as she didn’t know her way around the castle.

She wandered, using her acute hearing to dodge guards, by the time she made it out the walls the sun was starting to peek out from under the hills. Daylight was not her friend, and she needed to work quickly she followed the road down to the city, the dragon was easy to find. Kept in the center like a landmark rather than a living breathing thing. She stopped in front of the bars, she didn’t know if could understand her but she spoke to it anyway. Using human tongue instead her prefered elvish, it seemed only logical it could have learned that over the years.

“I, Lyra.” She pointed to herself, “Please do not…” She struggled with the word for a minute, letting out a little laugh. “Fear me. I’m trying to help you.” She explained, she examined the bars, obviously if it were just a regular prision a large creature like that could have broken free. No there was magic here, and she sensed it had a source. She pulled her hood tighter around her head, circling the bars until she found something that looked like it might be the magic’s power source. A lock, with a large red stone in the middle, she wondered if she smashed it if it would free the dragon.

She looked around on the ground until she found a rather large rock, using her limited arm strength she smashed the gem in the center. She saw it started to crack, she smashed the rock against it again, more cracks created. Finally she pulled her arm back as far as she could and swung at it, this time the gem shattered, breaking free of the lock. The lock fell open and Lyra yanked it from the cage bars that seemed to melt away like they were just made of ice.

 

[Wraith]

The dragon had been in that cursed cage for almost his entire life. He was barely a dragonling when the humans got him and he grew in a cage, a cage created by magic that grew once with him. At first he'd tried his best to escape, by any means. He'd tried making calls to his brethren, yet they went unanswered. Was it really possible for him to be the last of his kind? It was what he wondered every day and every night as he gazed at the stars. At the very least they hadn't taken that away from him. It was nigh uncomfortable to be unable to spread his wings as they grew, and he even wondered, if one day he was to be set free, would he know how to fly? But such questions were hard to answer and most likely posed an impossible problem. He'd never be free. Not by any stretch of imagination. The cage wasn't guarded, the humans were confident enough that the magic they employed was strong enough. But so he believed as well seeing as trying any physical method did not succeed. All he was left to do was sit and wait, watch as humans walked by his cage every day, mocking him. It seemed to give them a lot of satisfaction and they thrived on it. Humans were truly vile to the bone, there was no doubt about it, and his kin had been awfully wrong not to destroy them, erase them and cleanse them through fire. The peaceful way hadn't worked and it led to their extinction.

The dragon had learned the human tongue perfectly. It made sense, hearing them talk every day for nearly two hundred years helped slowly give him an understanding of the meanings of their words. And what else was he to do in all that spare time? It was strange to think about the fact that he barely knew anything from his mother tongue, but even if he would have it would've been of no use. He wouldn't have someone to speak it with. It was the reality that broke him. He was the last survivor of his kind and that would only be until humans had decided they had enough of him. Then, most likely, he'd end up as a trophy, head mounted up above the city gates or maybe in the throne room. But until then, humiliation and misery would be his companions as he watched people pass by his cage day by day. Teachers brought pupils to show them the part of history that the humans were most proud of. To tell them how vile and savage dragons were and how Theodrik Dragonbane was a hero of mankind for eliminating such a threat. If only those children would've known that this was far from the truth as it could be.

Today had been different right from the beginning, right from when the caravan passed by the cage. Those beings, they... they looked like humans but had long and pointy ears and all of them were beautiful and pristine much unlike many humans who were physically flawed in so many aspects. And not only that was what drew the dragon's attention but these beings, they emanated a strange energy, possibly magic that seemed oh, so familiar. Were they also humans? He could not quite tell for in the time of his capturing, he had not seen elves before. He watched with his large, golden eyes, relishing in the sight that was truly pleasant after having to look at those pesky humans for so long. Oh, how his heart longed to escape the cage or to tell those beings of his anguish and torture at the hands of the vile mortal beings. The pleasant sight was not long-lived and soon enough the dragon was left alone once more, save for the people who kept passing by, regarding him with spite and utter hatred. How he'd have loved to burn them all. Yet he couldn't quite know that his chance to do it would come so much sooner than he'd expect.

The day passed slow and boring, repetitive, just another drop in the bucket of aeons. The dragon's only option was to stay quiet and listen to the rumor. Of course he'd heard when the beloved queen had died, years ago. But now it seemed that she was to be replaced? The commoners spoke a great deal, some talking of how they envied the king for managing to get an elven consort, some others simply pitying the elf for having to endure a fate worse than death by marrying that "oaf, a drunken idiot without measure who didn't deserve the name that Theodrik had earned." and some simply not caring enough to gossip.

And with the coming of the night the rumor only died down as the streets emptied, save for the stoic guards that patrolled with torches in their hands. They seemed to pay no attention at all to the dragon, not even nearly as much as the commoners did, and that was good because else, what was to come would've been far more difficult to pull off. The dragon had barely curled up, decided to take a moment's rest if nothing else, perhaps to sleep a little, when a feeling far too familiar struck him all the way from the neck to the end of the tail. It was the same energy that he'd felt earlier as he watched the elven caravan. Of course, it could've been just one of the strange creatures taking a nightly stroll, yet it soon all proved to be something more than that.

He watched the curious being as she approached the cage, trying to convince him, in the most broken human tongue he'd heard, that she was a friend. That she was not a threat and that she wanted to break him out. Why? What could she possibly gain from this? He'd have wanted to ask so many questions yet in his dragon form, he could not speak. So instead he turned and watched almost perplexed as the elf found the strangest kind of solution. He didn't believe that was to work, but again, curiosity had him watch. What the elf had failed to realize in her attempts was that at least one guard had picked up on the sound that the stone hitting metal caused, and soon, the rumor only turned worse with several guards already rushing to apprehend the culprit.

The alarm bell was rung just at the moment when miraculously, the elf's trick worked. It only served to usher in the commotion that followed as more of the guards began swarming to the city's square, armed and ready to face the wrath of the newly freed dragon. It wouldn't be long before the entire garrison of the city would be present, too, and so the dragon had little time to ponder. He let out a bellowing roar of primal rage, announcing his newly found freedom and the doom of those who had treated him so wrongly for so long. However, between vengeance and showing his gratitude to the one who saved him, he quickly decided as he watched a couple of guards trying to rush in and catch the elf. His enormous body moved, long tail forming a protective barrier behind the elf, spread wings covering her head and the dragon's head catching between its behemoth jaws the first soldier who rushed in, crunching him savagely and turning him into a mangled mess of flesh, bone and the destroyed metal armor he wore.

His tail struck vigorously against the ground before swiping, tossing the soldiers behind him as if they were mere strawmen. It was the time of reckoning. He could feel minor stings as a few arrows pierced small spaces between his huge scales, nothing more but needles that didn't affect him in any way. As expected, more soldiers swarmed to the scene as the dragon did away with a few more guards, grabbing them in his huge fangs and throwing them away viciously or using his large claws to simply swipe, take out as many at once as he could.

Climb on my back he finally managed to say, though say was a bit too much. He wasn't even sure it would work but he still tried to at least communicate to the being with mere thoughts. He didn't quite yet know what this being was, but she saved him and for that he'd be eternally grateful.

 

[LovinglyAmira]

Still stunned that her rather barbarian plan had worked, it had taken Lyra longer than it should to realize that alarms were sounding and she was now a target. She whipped her body around, looking as the guards charged on them, they stood little chance against such a large beast but fragile Lyra was another story. She hadn’t thought this through but if she was going to go down by a humans sword she would do it with her pride intact. The bellowing roar for the dragon she had just freed vibrated through her bones, his pain and anger without words was now her own. She did not expect the creature to protect she didn’t even hope for it, it was much longer suffered than she could feel its wrath building and a need for revenge.

Then the dragon whipped its tail to guard her, she turned to look at its face now dripping with the blood of it’s slain victim. She should have been scared, its teeth were larger than her whole arm and it was taking out guards like they were made of torn parchment. Its large wing cradled around her like a shield and she knew that he had understood her broken human and was returning the favor. She turned her focus back to the humans trying to use her own magic to at least slow them, her father had often regarded the powers that plagued Lyra a curse. To feel so completely that she could embody the emotions of others, but it worked both ways. She took a deep breath, she focused her energy on calming the area around them. Attacks slowed, it wasn’t perfect as she wasn’t well practiced by any means.

The slight disruption was enough to give her frenzied mind a break, only to hear something, Climb on my back. It was clear, it clearly wasn’t her own thought taking a certain masculine tone and the obvious use of human language. She was hesitate to climb on the beasts back, but didn’t see much of a choice. The effect of her magic only temporary she had to move quickly but she wasn’t sure how to do this. She hiked up her gown, tieing her bag around her chest, now hands free she could climb up the dragon. She slipped at least once, before getting a handle on it and getting to the top. She threw her leg over, grabbing a firm hold onto one of the large spines that adored the dragons back.

No part of her life had prepared her for this moment, she had only spent a hundred years in this realm but it had been locked mostly behind the safety of guards. She was left to her studies, only hearing about the horrors of the world outside second hand. She had to have been over a hundred-fifty years old before she saw a human, and it had been dead. Head severed from his body as he had tried to cross over into the safety of the elven lands. She remembered he looked under nourished, her mother had explained that the human king had starved his village but they couldn’t let humans live there. They were unevolved and would only destroy the things around them no matter how harmless they might look.

She tried to think of where they might go, “North, go north towards the mountains.” She shouted, all she knew is that no one dare travel there. It wasn’t sure what was past the mountain range but no one had ever returned from there alive, but she was sure there were caves or something somewhere they could rest and regroup. She didn’t know what motives the dragon had beyond his cage but she was sure he would at least be happy to be free of this. She was assuming he was male and the voice that had broken into her thoughts was his but she held judgement.

 

[Wraith]

Soldiers kept swarming both from the front and the back, and the dragon kept pushing them, thrashing them and tossing them away, using his tail to swipe repeatedly, to stop them from gathering at his back, while his muzzle expertly caught those that tried to avoid its reach. The more humans he killed and maimed, the better it felt and the dragon was in something of a frenzy as he continued to fight. He wondered if the strange being that saved him had gotten his message, and he cast his slit pupil gaze back, noticing how the she-elf tried to climb, hanging onto his scales and having to put in quite the effort. Another roar was set free from the dragon's throat as he heard the words coming from his now passenger, words that were rather confusing. Mountains, north? First off, where was the north supposed to be? He hadn't seen the landscape beside that cursed square around himself and he most definitely had no clue what was north and what was not. On the other hand, they couldn't stay there much longer, the soldiers were already preparing the ballistas and those, those would actually hurt to deal with. The dragon had to make another quick decision, and at last, with a wide flap of his massive wings which caused a strong air blast that knocked back the soldiers closest to him, he lifted off the ground, feeling as if the world had suddenly gained new meaning.

Oh, how good it felt to be airborne, to rise above that cursed ground that he'd been stuck to his entire life, to see the city becoming smaller and smaller below. The city. How he swore to himself that he would burn it all to the ground, turn every one of those who came to mock him to ashes. His heart was dark and filled with hatred for all those primitive creatures and now he had a chance to take his revenge. They had to burn.

Hang on tight. He told the elf as he soared high above, spreading his wings widely before making a turn, circling around and diving back down towards the city, approaching it rather quickly before opening his massive jaws and releasing the flames that burned as hot as his despise for his captors, spitting them in a straight like right through the center of the large city, charring anything and anyone that was in the fire's path. How liberating it felt to hear voices, desperate screams from those who tried and failed to move out of the flame's way. He could hear something wheeze past him, a large projectile most likely coming from a ballista as he circled around, releasing another wave of fire upon a different part of the city. He didn't care and he didn't want to care, his vengeance was too satisfying to be spoiled. It was only after that he finally soared to the sky again and sought out the mountains, which decorated the night's horizon and beckoned him.

And behind him, the city burned, though the dragon had spit his fires upon the commons rather than the royal keep.

Flying felt so natural and his question had been answered, it seemed as though he did know how to do it, it was something that didn't need to be learned. Gliding above the forest that stretched all the way to the mountain felt so refreshing and the dragon didn't hold back from releasing a roar though this time, it was filled with glee, with joy at being free at last. And it was all thanks to the passenger on his back, whom he just now remembered. Nonetheless, there would be time for the two of them to get acquainted once they were safe.

After flying about the mountains for a short while, studying them, the dragon finally found a suited place to land on. A small plateau, small enough to be hard to detect and large enough for him to actually land on. He yet couldn't believe that he was free, but as he felt the ground under his massive being, and felt how different it was from what he had been standing on back in that cursed cage, the reality slowly but surely struck him. He was free. He could feel the small being on his back fumble around most likely trying to get off and he lowered himself all the way to allow her to safely dismount.

I think we're safe now. He said, turning around so he could properly gaze upon his savior. I owe you a great deal, little one. You... you came with that caravan, didn't you?

 

[LovinglyAmira]

Lyra was starting to regret her position, they hadn’t even lifted off the ground but from her new vantage point she could see the destruction already laid out around her. She was sympathetic to the creature, he had obviously been treated poorly and he was just trying to escape, she should have broken the cage and ran. She might not have gotten far but they wouldn’t have killed her, her father wouldn’t have allowed it. Than again, she never thought he would sell her for a fragile peace treaty with being obviously below them. It was too late to change her mind, she tried to point the direction but the dragon seemed to figure it out on his own after a moment of frustration.

Wings began to flap and before she knew it they were in the air, the gripped on tighter scared of her wits. She looked down and instantly regretted it instead closing her eyes tight. She knew more destruction probably lay in their wake but she still felt she had done the right thing to realise him. He was obviously a being of depth, not some dim witted mule. She felt heat, she opened her eyes again turning to see the city behind them burning. She shut her eyes tight again, holding tightly to the beast at least it hadn’t been her.

Ground couldn’t be found soon enough, as soon as she was sure he had landed securely on the ground she slid down from his back less than gracefully. She immediately ducked down to the rock below, she almost thought to kiss it. Instead she thanked the gods she had been spared and not fallen off the dragon's back mid flight. She turned startled when it spoke to her again, well spoke in its way.

“Caravan?” She asked confused, still dazed. “Oh, yes.” She stood up brushing herself off before lowering her hood. She looked around, they were rather high up but at least they weren’t moving. “Safe? I suppose we are for now at least.” She nodded, she didn’t think he owed her anything. She had done what seemed natural, the reason none of those human had freed him earlier only spoke to the weakness of their mortality.

She walked over to him, reaching her hand out and pressing it carefully to his large muzzle. “You owe me nothing, no creature of intelligence should be left to rot in a cage.” In a way her act of rebellion had freed her, “You have freed me from my own invisible bars, I had traveled here to marry the human king. I just couldn’t let that thing touch me.” She dropped her hand to her side. She didn’t know what they were to do next, she didn’t know what was beyond the mountains or even if the dragon would want to stay with her. She couldn’t exactly just go home and there were no other elves in this realm she could find salvation with.

“What now?” She questioned, looking into the beasts golden eyes. “You have your freedom what do you wish to do with it?”